Infants and other incontinent individuals wear absorbent articles such as diapers to receive and contain urine and other body exudates. Absorbent articles function both to contain discharged materials and to isolate the materials from the body of the wearer and from the wearer's garments and bed clothing. Disposable absorbent articles having many different basic designs are known in the art, including tape type diapers in which the rear portion of the diaper is attached to the front portion of the diaper on each side of the wearer, and “pull-on” type diapers which allow the wearer to pull the absorbent article on as pants and which do not require any of the fastening steps of the tape type designs.
It is also known that the exterior of disposable diapers can be covered with a flexible, liquid and vapor impervious sheet to prevent any absorbed liquid from passing through the diaper and soiling adjacent articles such as clothing, bedding and the like. These outer covers, generally referred to as backsheets, are often constructed from fluid impervious films such as polyethylene. Although such backsheets do prevent liquid from passing through the diaper, they also can make the diaper feel hot and uncomfortable to wear because of their impermeability to air and/or moisture, particularly in the back waist and side ear regions of the article.
Some disposable diapers are provided with a nonwoven material laminated or otherwise adhered to the backsheet film to provide the appearance of cloth and a cloth-like feel on the outside of the garment such that wearers and caregivers perceive a garment-like feel. However,such garments can be stiff, bulky or rough on the surface. The use of such nonwoven materials may also increase the raw material costs associated with production of the absorbent articles, especially for larger-sized garments, for example, as used by incontinent or bedridden adults.
Thus, there remains a desire to provide disposable absorbent articles with breathability and softness, particularly in the side ear area, without compromising strength and while still being cost-effective to produce. None of the existing art provides all of the advantages and benefits of the present invention.